![]() ![]() What's interesting about "white trash" as a term is its unfavourable history and the attempts to reappropriate its meaning in modern times, which Isenberg refers to as "identity politics." This move to subvert negative connotations is something Isenberg says has been exploited by politicians, even before Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. Isenberg points to early examples of politicians who claimed to support or represent "poor whites" while invoking an us-versus-them mentality. ![]() Nancy Isenberg, author ofĪccording to Isenberg, there is a myth that the British class system is one America escaped, but she says that at pivotal moments of the country's history, "class is moved front and centre." In fact, Isenberg says playing on class - like referring to one's self as an average Joe, common man, or even redneck - is a common tactic for public figures to tap into the powerful emotions behind one's roots. Part of the problem is Americans in general don't like to talk about class. ![]() ![]() Nancy Isenberg, an American history professor at Lousiana State University, has studied the role of class in the United States and her new book, White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America, unpacks the country's relationship with the matter. ![]()
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